Eli Manning’s five best career games vs the Redskins

In honor of the New York Giants facing off against the Redskins this Sunday, here are Eli Manning’s five best career games vsWashington.

Throughout his long and storied career as a New York Giant, Eli Manning has faced the NFC East-rival Washington Redskins 27 times. With a record of 17-10, Eli and the Giants have had their good games against the Redskins. However, they’ve had their not-so-good games as well.

And with these two teams facing off this Sunday, here is our list of Manning’s five best games against Washington.

5. 2008 Week 13 Win on the Road

The Giants came into Washington for this Week 13 matchup with a record of 10-1, an NFC-best. And luckily, the winning hadn’t stopped there, as Eli Manning put on a show.

Completing 21-34 of his passes, Eli maintained a 61.8 completion percentage. He also threw for 305 yards and a touchdown. The only touchdown was a 40-yard score to legendary Giants receiver, Amani Toomer.

The win on the road brought the Giants to 11-1 on the year. It thus maintained their status as the best team in the NFC. They eventually finished 12-4 and were the number-one seed in their conference. However, that came with losing to the Eagles in the divisional round of the playoffs.

4. 2015 Week 3 Win at Home

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It was an 0-2 start of the Giants in 2015, as they hosted the Washington Redskins at MetLife Stadium on a Thursday night. With an above-average performance from Eli Manning, the Giants were able to get into the win column for the first time that season.

Being very careful with the ball and reading the Washington secondary well all game, Eli completed 71.9 percent of his throws (23-for-32) with 279 yards and two touchdowns. He also managed to throw zero interceptions the entire game as well.

Both touchdowns that Eli threw were in the second half. One of them was a 30-yard touchdown down the middle of the field to Odell Beckham Jr. The second was a bobbled catch made near the goal line by former receiver Rueben Randle.

Big Blue won the game 32-21, bringing their record to 1-2 in a season where they finished 6-10, and failed to make the postseason.

3. 2014 Week 15 Win at Home

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Going into this game, the season was basically over for the Giants at this point. With a 4-9 record, they were simply out of playoff contention. However, it was still an NFC East Rivalry game at MetLife Stadium, a game they so deeply cared about and prepared for.

Once again, in this game, Eli Manning was extremely careful with the football and didn’t for a second look uncomfortable throughout the game. Going 23-for-34 through the air, with 250 yards and three touchdowns to no interceptions, Eli put on a show to say the least.

Not only did he play well all throughout, he managed to find his number one receiver, Odell Beckham Jr. numerous times that day. OBJ finished with three touchdown receptions, one from 10 yards out, one from 35 and one from six.

Again, it was a game that didn’t matter for the playoffs. However, the win did bring the Giants to 5-9, and gave them their second victory against the Redskins on the year.

2. 2009 Week 15 MNF Victory on the Road

It was December football on a Monday night in Washington. The Giants came into FedEx Field looking to defeat a team they already defeated in Week 1 of that season. Big Blue was 7-6, and so desperately needed a win to stay alive in the postseason conversation. And that’s when Eli Manning came up huge.

With 268 passing yards, along with a 73.1 completion percentage, Eli threw for three touchdowns and zero interceptions. Many different names got involved in the offensive production as well. Former receivers Steve Smith, Derek Hagan and Mario Manningham all had scores for Big Blue in that game.

A contest that was barely a competition all throughout, Eli and the Giants pulled away with a 45-12 victory over the Redskins. It brought the Giants to 8-6 on the year, and ended up being their last win of the season, as they missed the playoffs for the first time since 2004.

1. 2014 Week 4 TNF Victory on the Road

Fresh off their first victory of the year, the Giants were 1-2 headed into FedEx Field on a short week. It was a Thursday night contest against the Redskins, a very winnable game that would help put the Giants back on the map in the NFC after starting 0-2.

Although he threw one pick on the game, other than that, Eli Manning was near perfect. Completing 71.8 percent of his passes, Manning managed to rack up 300 yards with four touchdowns. Not to mention, he had a one-yard rushing touchdown late in the game as well.

Utilizing his tight ends, Eli threw three touchdowns to former Giants tight end Larry Donnell, along with one to former tight end Daniel Fells.

With a final score of 45-14, Eli and the Giants were able to exit Washington on a short week with a great team victory. They advanced to 2-2 on the year, and brought themselves back into the NFC conversation very early on.

Could this week serve as another classic for the aging quarterback? Keep your eyes on Eli Manning and see if the magic comes back against his rivals.